Holidays shopping brings out the scammers. Here's how to stay safe

Summary

Consider This from NPR: Holidays Shopping Brings Out the Scammers. Here's How to Stay Safe

Release Date: December 17, 2024

In this episode of NPR's "Consider This," host Mary Louise Kelly delves into the surge of scams that emerge during the holiday shopping season. With millions engaging in online purchases, scammers exploit the festive rush to steal personal and financial information. The episode offers real-life stories, expert insights, and practical tips to help listeners navigate the holiday shopping frenzy safely.

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Real-Life Scams: When Trust Turns Costly

The episode opens with a scenario experienced by Peter O'Dowd, an editor at NPR's "Here and Now."

[00:00] Mary Louise Kelly: "Recently, Peter O'Dowd got this voicemail."

[00:03] Amelia (Scammer): "Hey, this is Amelia from Walmart. A pre-authorized purchase of PlayStation 5 with special edition and Pulse 3D headset is being ordered from your Walmart account for an amount of $919.45. To cancel your order or to connect with one of our customer support representatives, please press 1."

Unaware of his non-existent Walmart account, Peter correctly suspects the call is a scam, recognizing the voice as artificial intelligence.

Another poignant story is shared about Kelly Richmond Pope, a professor of forensic accounting at DePaul University, who fell victim to a concert ticket scam.

[01:19] Mary Louise Kelly: "For Kelly Richmond Pope, that one moment was a few years ago when Bruno Mars was appearing in her city."

[01:32] Kelly Richmond Pope: "So my cousin and I go to the Bruno Mars concert. We're super excited. We get in, go through the United Center door and we get a big X over the ticket."

[01:42] Kelly Richmond Pope: "And when I go back and I think what happened, the website that I got it off of, it did look a little bit different than the traditional looking Ticketmaster website. It's almost like if you got Taylor Swift or Beyoncé tickets front row for 100 bucks apiece. And that was how good of a deal this was."

Despite her expertise in fraud and forensic accounting, Kelly realized too late that the tickets were fake, highlighting that even professionals are not immune to scams.

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Expert Insights: Understanding the Rise of Holiday Scams

George Abraham, CEO of ScamAdvisor.com and Managing Director of the Global Scam Alliance, provides a broader perspective on the prevalence of scams during the holidays.

[00:55] George Abraham: "Doesn't matter what your education level or how old you are, there's always one moment in your life that a scammer finds you at the right time with the right message to scam you."

The surge in holiday shopping naturally leads to an increase in scams, as scammers capitalize on the heightened spending and the emotional state of consumers during the festive season.

[04:25] Unknown Interviewer: "See scams rise around the holidays? Is that just simple math? More purchases means more scamming opportunities?"

[04:31] Kelly Richmond Pope: "Absolutely. I mean, we see an increased amount of spending and that really is the driving force behind why we see more scams during the holiday season."

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Vulnerability Across All Demographics

The episode emphasizes that no demographic is immune to scamming tactics.

[04:45] Kelly Richmond Pope: "So here's the thing. Everybody, whether it's teenagers, whether it's young adults, the elderly, everyone is vulnerable because we are so in the holiday spirit. We're more trusting and we are just buying, buying, buying."

The festive spirit fosters a trusting environment, making individuals more susceptible to fraudulent schemes that appeal to their desire to give and receive during the holidays.

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Protective Measures: Staying Safe During Holiday Shopping

Professor Kelly Richmond Pope shares actionable strategies to safeguard against scams:

1. Keep a Purchase Log:

   • [05:31] Kelly Richmond Pope: "I try to keep a list of everything that I've purchased in a certain week or a certain time period. So I make the purchase and then I pay attention to when should the package come."

   Maintaining a detailed record helps identify unauthorized orders or fraudulent notifications, enabling swift action if discrepancies arise.

2. Verify Website Authenticity:

   • [06:22] Kelly Richmond Pope: "There are some really good fake websites now, but you have to pay attention, pay attention to the tone of the website, pay attention even to the website address, because sometimes there's one character that's slightly different that would let you know that it's a fraudulent website."

   Scrutinizing URLs and website design can help distinguish legitimate sites from counterfeit ones designed to steal information.

3. Research Charities Thoroughly:

   • [06:22] Kelly Richmond Pope: "If I were wanting to make a donation, I would do some research on the charity to make sure it is a legitimate charity."

   Ensuring that donations go to reputable organizations prevents falling prey to fake charity scams.

4. Slow Down and Avoid Urgency:

   • [07:13] Kelly Richmond Pope: "Just slow down. Because one of the things that scammers really prey on is urgency. So they think, hey, you need to act fast or you're gonna miss out on this deal."

   Taking time to evaluate offers and avoiding hasty decisions can reduce the likelihood of being scammed.

5. Double-Check Unsolicited Messages:

   • [07:53] Kelly Richmond Pope: "Take a deep breath, read it a little bit closer before you click. If it seems suspicious, it probably is. Don't click."

   Being cautious with unsolicited communications can prevent inadvertent exposure to malicious links or requests.

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Conclusion: Vigilance is Key

As the holiday shopping season intensifies, so does the ingenuity of scammers. "Consider This" underscores the importance of vigilance, education, and proactive measures to protect oneself from fraud. By understanding common tactics and implementing protective strategies, consumers can enjoy a safer and more joyful holiday season.

[08:03] Mary Louise Kelly: "Professor Kelly Richmond Pope is author of Fool Me Once Scam Stories and Secrets."

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Stay informed and stay safe this holiday season by being aware of the risks and taking steps to protect your personal and financial information.

Transcript

[Mary Louise Kelly]

Recently, Peter O'Dowd got this voicemail.

[Amelia]

Hey, this is Amelia from Walmart. A pre authorized purchase of PlayStation 5 with special edition and Pulse 3D headset is being ordered from your Walmart account for an amount of $919.45. To cancel your order or to connect with one of our customer support representatives, please press 1.

[Mary Louise Kelly]

Peter is our colleague, an editor at NPR's Here and Now. He did not order a PlayStation. He does not a Walmart account. And he rightly guessed that Amelia was A.I. the call was a scam. Had he returned the call, he might have heard something like this.

[George Abraham]

Oh, you did not order. Oh, okay. Can you please give us your credit card details so that we can cancel your order and then they take it from there and they try to get as much personal as financial information as possible from you.

[Mary Louise Kelly]

As CEO of scamadvisor.com and managing director of the Global Scam Alliance, George Abraham, trapped attempts to separate you from your money and your personal information.

[George Abraham]

Doesn't matter what your education level or how old you are, there's always one moment in your life that a scammer finds you at the right time with the right message to scam you.

[Mary Louise Kelly]

For Kelly Richmond Pope, that one moment was a few years ago when Bruno Mars was appearing in her city. So she went to the Ticketmaster website and she managed to get fantastic seats cheap.

[Kelly Richmond Pope]

So my cousin and I go to the Bruno Mars concert. We're super excited. We get in, go through the United center door and we get a big X over the ticket.

[Mary Louise Kelly]

You guessed it, the tickets were fake.

[Kelly Richmond Pope]

And when I go back and I think what happened, the website that I got it off of, it did look a little bit different than the traditional looking Ticketmaster website. It's almost like if you got Taylor Swift or Beyonce tickets front row for 100 bucks apiece. And that was how good of a deal this was.

[Unknown Interviewer]

Okay, if you think you would never.

[Mary Louise Kelly]

Fall for that, take Kelly Richmond Pope's story as a cautionary tale. She is a professor of forensic accounting.

[Kelly Richmond Pope]

And my area of expertise is fraud, forensic accounting and white collar crime.

[Mary Louise Kelly]

Consider this. If even people who study scams for a living are not immune to getting scammed, what chance do the rest of us stand? From npr, I'm Mary Louise Kelly.

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[Mary Louise Kelly]

It's Consider this from npr. There are just a handful of shopping days left until Christmas and millions of us are getting online, pulling out credit cards and clicking buy. The National Retail Federation predicts holiday sales could be up by two and a half to three and a half percent from last year. Unfortunately, with all this seasonal shopping comes more opportunity for financial and identity theft. Kelly Richmond Pope, as you heard, is professor of forensic accounting at DePaul University in Chicago. I talked to her earlier this month about ways to protect yourself from online fraud as you do your holiday shopping. Start with the why why do we.

[Unknown Interviewer]

See scams rise around the holidays? Is that just simple math? More purchases means more scamming opportunities?

[Kelly Richmond Pope]

Absolutely. I mean, we see an increased amount of spending and that really is the driving force behind why we see more scams during the holiday season.

[Unknown Interviewer]

And who is being scammed? Who's most vulnerable?

[Kelly Richmond Pope]

So here's the thing. Everybody, whether it's teenagers, whether it's young adults, the elderly, everyone is vulnerable because we are so in the holiday spirit. We're more trusting and we are just buying, buying, buying. There are these websites that just sort of reach out to us and speak to us. We want to help charities. So we are just in this giving season. So all of those things really fuel the scam industry, if you will.

[Unknown Interviewer]

What about I repeatedly in the last month kept getting texts from quote unquote Amazon and not to rip on Amazon, but kept telling me, hey, we tried to deliver your package, we couldn't. And I'm thinking, I don't remember ordering, ordering from Amazon, but I or who knows. So like the instinct is let me click on it and make sure I get my package.

[Kelly Richmond Pope]

I tell you what I do is I try to keep a list of everything that I've purchased in a certain week or a certain time period. So I make the purchase and Then I pay attention to when should the package come? So I just try to keep a mental log, maybe just a little Excel spreadsheet, maybe even use the notes app in your phone so you can keep track of those purchases. Because what that scammer is hoping that you do is forget and second guess yourself. And so I try not to let that happen to myself by just really being diligent about the notes I take. So that when I get something from West Elm that says, hey, we tried to deliver something, my first instinct is to say, well, I didn't order anything from West Elm.

[Unknown Interviewer]

Another thing to watch for, fake websites, websites that look really close to the website you were trying to get onto and buy something but aren't quite right.

[Kelly Richmond Pope]

And this is the thing, there are some really good fake websites now, but you have to pay attention, pay attention to the tone of the website, pay attention even to the website address, because sometimes there's one character that's slightly different that would let you know that it's a fraudulent website. So if I were wanting to make a donation, I would do some research on the charity to make sure it is a legitimate charity. Before you give any information, especially any personal identification information like your credit card, your address, your Social Security number, like if they're asking for some of those things, be very, very vigilant and go to the actual website. If there's a phone number, call it. Because the last thing you ever want is for someone to steal your identity.

[Unknown Interviewer]

Any other top tips for us to keep top of mind as we navigate holiday shopping season?

[Kelly Richmond Pope]

Just slow down. Because one of the things that scammers really prey on is urgency. So they think, hey, you need to act fast or you're gonna miss out on this deal. You're probably not gonn read the fine print, make sure the website is right. Pay attention to the tone. Pay attention to who sent the message to you. Because a lot of times the red flags are staring us right in the face. But our hurry just makes us overlook things that are just staring at us. So just slow down.

[Unknown Interviewer]

I guess another top tip would be get off your sofa, get off your computer and just walk into the dang store. Makes it a lot harder to be the victim of online fraud.

[Kelly Richmond Pope]

It does just take five seconds. Take a deep breath, read it a little bit closer before you click. If it seems suspicious, it probably is. Don't click.

[Mary Louise Kelly]

Professor Kelly Richmond Pope is author of Fool Me Once Scam Stories and Secrets.

[Unknown Interviewer]

From the Trillion Dollar Fraud Industry.

[Mary Louise Kelly]

Thanks so much.

[Unknown Interviewer]

Thanks for having me and happy shopping.

[Mary Louise Kelly]

This episode was produced by Connor Donovan Thomas, Donnie Yellian and Claire Marie Schneider. It was edited by Jeanette woods and John Ketchum. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. It's Consider this from npr. I'm Mary Louise Kelly.

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